When on the lake, fishing can be a great activity to relax and enjoy the outdoors. To help your children enjoy fishing on the lake, here are a few of our tips to make it enjoyable all around.

1. Start Slow

With young kids, a great place to start is just to walk around the lake and enjoy the nature. This allows your child to become accustomed to being outside and near the water. If you happen to see others fishing, this is a great opportunity to engage with your child to explain what they’re doing and pique their interest.

2. Catch Fish

For a lot of kids, going several hours without catching a fish can be boring. So in the beginning, start with a pond or lake that you know has lots of fish. Two fish that are relatively easy to catch for beginners are Bluegill (prevalent at Morse Lake in Noblesville) and Sunfish (Geist).

3. Be Safe

This may go without saying, but to novices and children around the water, make sure they’re wearing a life vest. Safety is always the most important aspect to anything with children on the water.

Additionally, if a child is uncomfortable with casting the rod, you may have to help them out the first few times – after all, it is a sharp hook on the end of that line!

4. Don’t stay too long

As mentioned before, children can easily get distracted or bored, so try to keep your first few fishing adventures in the neighborhood of 2 hours or less. This will keep your kids engaged, so next time they won’t dread a 6 hour fishing day on the lake, and also keeps it manageable for you too.

Bottom Line: Pay attention and listen to them. If the kids want to call it a day a bit earlier than planned, that’s ok! Very rarely is anyone ever “hooked” on anything after one try. Fishing is supposed to be enjoyable for all, and if today isn’t the day, there’s always another day when you live on the lake.